Germanium has risen by 2%, trading at ¥25,500 ($5,270) per kilogram as of 27 August, Trading Economics reports.
This increase puts the element up 88.89% for this year to date and up 77.10% from the same time last year.
According to the Department of Industry, Science and Resources (DISR) June 2026 Resources and Energy Quarterly, demand for metals needed in compound semiconductors is expected to grow in the coming years.
This demand includes increased use of gallium, indium, and germanium. Compound semiconductors are required for high-speed optical data transmission and are used in optoelectronics, electric vehicles, solar inverters, and 5G smartphones.
Germanium is a hard, grayish-white metalloid that mainly occurs as a byproduct of zinc ore processing.
From 2021–25, the US recorded no primary refined germanium production, importing 21,000kg of germanium metal in 2024, before dropping to 7,000kg in 2025, according to the US Geological Survey.
Meanwhile, US imports of germanium dioxide increased over the last two years, from 11,000kg in 2024 to 17,000kg in 2025.
In 2021–24, China led the import sources for germanium metal with 41%, followed by Belgium with 27% and Germany with 25%. In this same period, Belgium led the import sources for germanium dioxide with 57%, followed by Canada with 37%.
In Canada, Rapid Critical Metals (ASX:RCM) is exploring the Prophet River Project in British Columbia, which has exposure to ‘high-grade’ zinc, gallium, and germanium.
Prophet River spans 2,110 hectares near the historic Cay mine and sits within a mineralised system that extends over 1km. The system is defined by soil anomalies and remains open in both directions.
As an Australian explorer also focused on advancing the Webbs and Conrads silver projects in New South Wales, Rapid Critical Metals wasn’t necessarily searching for a project to bring the company into Canada. However, Prophet River’s germanium and gallium grades stood out, Managing Director Byron Miles tells this news service.
“What originally drew us there was our germanium and gallium asset. It was not so much about the country; it was about the grade of the asset that we have there,” Miles tells Mining.com.au.
Miles describes Prophet River’s grades as “globally significant”, with the added surprise of the US Government being bullish about critical minerals, which is of benefit for the company operating nearby.
Historical results from Prophet River include up to 22.69% zinc, 40 grams per tonne gallium, and 1,500 parts per million germanium.
Rapid Critical Metals is an Australian mineral explorer focused on developing its silver and critical mineral assets in New South Wales and Canada.
Write to Maddison Elliott at Mining.com.au
Images: Rapid Critical Metals
